STAMPS NOTES: Mitchell shines in brief cameo

STAMPS NOTES: Mitchell shines in brief cameo

Calgary Stampeders quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell (19) passes against the B.C. Lions during the first half of a pre-season CFL football game in Vancouver on Friday. Photo by Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press.

The sample size is small, but yeah, Bo Levi Mitchell can still air the ball out.

There weren’t exactly a lot of people who were worried about that, admittedly, but it’s been notable in Mitchell’s two brief pre-season cameos that he’s looked to go deep whenever possible.

In the Stamps’ pre-season opener last weekend against the Saskatchewan Roughriders, he connected with Reggie Begelton on a pretty 39-yarder.

On Friday night against the B.C. Lions in Vancouver, he found Juwan Brescacin for a gorgeous 53-yard touchdown in the first quarter.

Now, it’s probably best not to read too much into this.

Mitchell likely knew he only had one or two drives to make an impact on a meaningless game Friday night, and that’s sort of the perfect situation for a quarterback to let loose and have some fun by launching the ball downfield.

But Mitchell’s performance is always going to be a major storyline for the Stamps, especially after he signed a major contract extension in the off-season.

And so far, it looks like Stamps fans could be in for a very fun season from the reigning CFL Most Outstanding Player.

He finished his brief stint at QB on Friday having completed 4-of-6 passes for 84 yards and a touchdown.

He didn’t play much, but it was enough for Mitchell to get fans excited for what’s to come this season.

EARNED IT

The Stampeders presented Grey Cup rings to the Lions who helped them win the Grey Cup last year prior to Friday’s contest.

That meant there was a cool moment where Lemar Durant, Maleki Harris and DeVone Claybrooks were all standing on the field together and admiring their new pieces of jewelry.

Stamps head coach Dave Dickenson had made sure to highlight the contributions of all three to last year’s championship, and it was clear how much the rings meant to each guy.

It’s unclear whether the Stamps will be bringing rings to every city they visit where last year’s players are now playing or whether they’ll be sending guys like DaVaris Daniels in Edmonton his ring in the mail.

It certainly made for a nice moment seeing last year’s Stamps with their rings on Friday, though.

NOTES Friday night’s game might have had the friendliest coin toss of all time. Mitchell was laughing throughout, and Lions receiver Bryan Burnham literally bent over and pointed at the Stamps with a huge smile on his face after the Lions won the toss … There’s something about Aaron Peck. We’ll know who the Stamps are keeping around for the regular season by the time we go to bed on Saturday night, but the receiver’s certainly made an impression … Chris Casher had a nice knockdown on a Mike Reilly pass early in the first quarter. With the Stamps searching for a defensive end to take over from Ja’Gared Davis, Casher has certainly had some impressive moments during camp … Gump Hayes has had a weird camp. He began as the frontrunner for the starting field corner job, but by last week’s pre-season opener was second on the depth chart. In two games, though, he’s had an interception and almost forced a fumble on the one-yard line – the command centre reviewed the play and the call on the field was overturned, but still. Those sorts of stats can sometimes be misleading, but he definitely makes plays … Said it before and I’ll say it again, Brescacin is going to have a big year. He’s clearly going to be a bigger part of the offence and based on what we saw on Friday night, he’s ready. It wasn’t just his 53-yard touchdown, he also caught a 15-yarder on second down to keep that drive alive. He’s been moved into the slot position where guys like Marquay McDaniel and Kamar Jorden made their money over the last couple years, and did not look out of place there at all … The command centre had its fingerprints all over Friday’s game. Not saying that’s good or bad, but it was notable. Their decision that Ese Mrabure should get flagged for roughing the passer was definitely debatable … They played ‘Mo Bamba’ at BC Place. It was basically the theme song to the Stamps’ season last year but we haven’t heard it much this season. The players seemed to appreciate it, as the sideline basically became a dance party for about 30 seconds … Michael Klukas is going to make an impact this year … At some point, Nick Arbuckle is probably going to be deserving of some playing time. He’s not going to take Mitchell’s starting spot, but his 45-yard connection with Klukas in the second quarter was beautiful and he’s looked really good this pre-season … Marko Myers made sure we know who he is with a pick-six in the second quarter. The guy’s got wheels.

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